AustLit

 (Publication summary)

'Libby Gleeson, AM (1950–) remembers, "There were six children in the family. I was number three and there wasn't a lot of money. We didn't have television and of course there was no such thing as a computer. Books and reading were hugely important. I remember going to the library on a Saturday morning and borrowing five or six books and reading them all by Sunday night."' (Introduction)

'The planes kept flying low above them. They were dropping bombs and the noise drowned out all other sounds. After an hour the signal rang out and they surged forward through the smoke. Thousands of men screaming and yelling, their line was kilometres wide. Behind them came Monash's tanks, those huge, new mobile machines. They smothered the land they ran over; flattening the crops and then any wire left standing. With Russia out of the war, the Germans have sent all the troops to the Western Front. Almost defeated, a small group of Australians fight to hold the enemy back at Villers Brettoneux. Weary after years of fighting and deadlock, Ned and his mates know that the war will be lost if they can't turn the tide. More and more, Ned's thoughts turn to home, not knowing if he will ever see his family, or his brother, again.' (Publication summary)

'Libby Gleeson tells a poignant story about letting go, with evocative illustrations by acclaimed illustrator Anna Pignataro. ' (Publication summary)
 

'In this delightful companion to The Cleo Stories: The Necklace and the Present, Cleo comes up with ingenious ways to make a new friend and find a pet.

'Cleo's best friend is away, her parents are busy, and there's nothing to do but count raindrops - or tidy her room. Just when she thinks she'll never cheer up, Cleo has an idea. In the next story, Cleo longs for a pet but her mum and dad say no. Perhaps the answer is hidden somewhere unexpected.

'Two more endearing stories about Cleo, the little girl with a big imagination who always finds a way to have fun, from the creators of The Cleo Stories: The Necklace and the Present.' (Publication summary)

'If only Jessie would lie down. If only she would go to sleep. But nothing will settle her ... except maybe a little sisterly know-how.' (Publication summary)

'Cleo desperately wants a necklace. Her parents say special presents are only for birthdays...but Cleo doesn't want to wait. In the second story, it's her mum's birthday and Cleo doesn't know what to give her - until she has the best idea of all.

'Delightful, warm and irresistible, these stories show how a little girl with a big imagination can always find a way to have fun.' (Publication summary)

'A funny and touching story of antagonism and love by award-winning author Libby Gleeson, with illustrations by internationally acclaimed Freya Blackwood. Freya Blackwood's stunning illustrations perfectly capture the endearing personalities of boisterous Banjo and head-strong Ruby Red.' (Publisher's blurb)

'Australian picture books enjoy enormous success nationally and internationally but nothing prepared the literary community or the reading public for The Arrival by Shaun Tan. Classified as a picture book, as indeed were all prior works by Shaun Tan, this book is far more than that. His hundreds of pencil images tell a sophisticated tale of migration.' (Introduction)

'Mud. In her mouth, her nose and her eyes. Mud in her hair and caked on her neck and her arms. Mud filling her shoes and seeping through the thin cotton weave of her trousers. She lay sprawled on her side, a garbled, barely distinct sound coming from her: jaymartinjaymartin. Her world was mud and pain.

'"What's your name?" A boy was sitting on a kitchen table floating in a muddy pool. At his feet was a child's doll, the head lolling to one side. '"jaymartinjaymartin" she repeated mechanically. He stepped forward and slapped her hard across the face. "Shut up that stupid talk."

'Red can't remember the cyclone. She can't remember anything - her name, where she lived, who her family might be. Her identity has been ripped away. Then she makes a discovery, and finds she has an important mission to accomplish. But in this chaotic, bewildering world, can she do it on her own? Who can she trust?' (From the publisher's website.)